UNITED NATIONS, June 10, audio here -- In today's UN, press questions about the use of drones are not answered; events promoting drones are tweeted as "join us" - and then the press is told to leave. This is today's UN.
At the UN, events about Many meetings are needlessly closed to the press and public at the UN, but a new and absurd low was hit on June 9 - and then June 10.
On June 10 the "UN Summer Academy" gushed on Twitter, "Hervé Ladsous Undersec-General of @unpeacekeeping will discuss innovation & technology for peace & security. How shld @UN do it? Join us."
The further irony: on June 9, the organizer of this "UN Summer Academy" had told the Press to leave its events, they are closed and for a small group of people. Join us?
On June 9 no sign said "closed;" there was a UN Summer Academy banner in front. Inner City Press went in and, in order not to take any seat that could be sold -- UNCA as noted charges money, then holdsfaux UN briefings in the room the UN gives them for free, now long sitting empty until an upcoming scam "reopening" -- stood in the back.
Down on the stage, Pam Falk was citing anger at sovereignty and non-interference. Inner City Press began to record and prepare to report on this event which had been and was being publicized. Audio here.
Then a man rushed up from near the stage and asked Inner City Press to step outside. He said the session was "a closed meeting" for "a small group of people." Inner City Press made its argument to continue to record and report on the substance of this meeting being held in the UN. He declined to let Inner City Press back in. Audio here, from 0:19.
What is the purpose?
How can a supposed group of UN correspondents, or at least its two year figurehead, promote such a meeting which is then closed to the press? This question UNaddressed, Falk promoted her mid-day toasting with UN officials whom correspondent purportedly cover. This is the UN's Censorship Alliance.
Needless to say, the new Free UN Coalition for Access, formed after UNCA's board tried to get the investigative Press thrown out of the UN and then remained unreformed, opposes and will have more on this. #Ladsous2014..
UNITED NATIONS, May 7, 2014 -- A month after UN Peacekeeping under Herve Ladsous having purged Congolese and Rwanda historical documents by letting go of the MONUC.org domain was exposed by Inner City Press, more spin and snafus have come to light.
Again we ask: when UN Peacekeeping closes down or even just re-names one of its missions, what remains of its history, including its website and domain?
Well at least under Herve Ladsous as regards the oldMONUC.org, now renamed MONUSCO, history is purged, sold off, covered up.
And then, tellingly, the UN dissembles, today telling Inner City Press that MONUC.org is not really gone. But it is - click here and watch as www.MONUCO.org redirects to www.waypathinternet.com - and along with it, history of complicity in the Rwanda genocide.
On April 7, 2014, the 20th anniversary of the beginning of the genocide against the Tutsis in Rwanda, Ladsous openly refused to answer Inner City Press' question about when MONUSCO will belatedly go after the Hutu FDLR militia, saying "Mister, you know I never answer your questions and you know very well why." Video here.
Why, then? Ladsous was France's Deputy Permanent Representative at the UN in 1994 during the Rwanda genocide, and he argued for French policies including the escape of the genocidaires into Eastern Congo. See sample memo, here.
Ladsous would certainly like that 1994 memo to disappear - in fact, by refusing to answer Press questions he tries to disappear the issue. But consider this:
"The serious and consistent allegations against Callixte Mbarushimana, the executive secretary of the FDLR, have been a source of considerable embarrassment for the UN for many years. After the evacuation of foreign staff, the 44-year-old computer technician appointed himself as Officer-in-Charge of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Rwanda, from 10 April to 4 July 1994. He is accused by dozens of witnesses, including former colleagues, militiamen and local administrators, of used his position, and the resources, of the UNDP, to advance the policy of massacres, including the murder of Tutsis who worked for the UNDP. Dressed in military fatigues, armed with a gun and carrying grenades in his belt, witnesses say that he lent the vehicles and satellite telephones of the UNDP to militaryofficers, that he also used the UNDP vehicles to facilitate his own contribution to the killings."
But attempting it on April 7, 2014 it emerged that the UN has not only abandoned the website of its largest and longest running peacekeeping mission - it has allowed a for profit company PathwayInternet.com to take it over. So much for preserving memory. Under Ladsous, the goal seems to be to censor or disappear memory.
And so on April 8 Inner City Press asked the UN's deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq what had happened to MONUC.org, and to the information about the Rwanda genocide that used to be on it. Haq's office returned with this, copied to lead spokesperson Stephane Dujarric, which leaves MONUC.org and that now missing information UNaddressed:
Subject: Your question on DPKO websites From: UN Spokesperson - Do Not Reply Date: Tue, Apr 8, 2014 at 2:17 PM To: Matthew.Lee [at] innercitypress.com Cc: Stephane Dujarric [at[ un.org>
Regarding the question you asked about MONUC and other websites of past UN peacekeeping missions, the Department of Peacekeeping Operations has the following information:
UN Peacekeeping maintains pages on the UN Peacekeeping website for all past operations http://www.un.org/en/peacekeeping/missions/past/
Most active missions run their own local website. In the case of MONUC, we understand their local website was renamed with a new url to reflect the establishment of MONUSCO:
http://www.monusco.unmissions.org/
But where is MONUC.org and the information that was on it? On the archivedhttp://www.un.org/en/peacekeeping/missions/past/monuc/ there appears to be no information on the UN's own Callixte Mburushimana. There are dead links.
It is noteworthy that despite the ease of verifying where www.MONUC.org points now, the above was sent - but Inner City Press' April 8 question about what Ladsous said about drones or UUAVs has not yet been answered. We'll have more on this.
Also in Ladsous' UN Peacekeeping there is a process of not speaking in the first place. At the event on April 7, 2014 where Ladsous refused to answer, Inner City Press also asked why for example Ladsous' Western Sahara mission MINURSO has no social media presence. It is listed at the bottom of UN Peacekeeping's website as a "missions with no social media presence."
The answer given -- not by Ladsous, who refuses Inner City Press questions -- is that for some missions, countries do no give permission for certain equipment or, apparently, Twitter accounts. But who could it be, banning MINURSO in Western Sahara from social media?
Ladsous tries to spoonfeed information to friendly scribes; in his favor first the UN Correspondents Association (requested by Agence France Presse) then the current spokesperson of UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon have made threats to discourage coverage. There's more on this - but this is yesterday's video, here; this is today's UN. Watch this site.
UNITED NATIONS, May 5 -- After US Secretary of State John Kerry in Juba met Salva Kiir and called Riek Machar, speaking about the IGAD mediation and, neighboring countries' diplomats tell Inner City Press, about a prospective IGAD, now UN Peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous is headed to South Sudan.
But what is his UN mission's role? When Kerry met in Addis Ababa with his counterparts from Kenya, Uganda and Ethiopia, he said there is a need for a legitimate force to help make peace. UNMISS has been there and has not been able to make or keep peace. In terms of legitimacy, Ladsous as head of UN Peacekeeping has openly refused to answer Press questions about rapes by the UN's partners and, here, South Sudan.
In his last scheduled stop before heading to South Sudan, Ladsous in theCentral African Republic talked about using drones as he has in Eastern Congo. There, Ladsous' drones have yet to be used for any long-promised neutralization of the Hutu FDLR militia. How would they be used in CAR or, if proposed, in South Sudan?
On May 2 Kerry spoke by phone with former vice president Riek Machar. A senior US State Department official on background summarized: "Secretary Kerry urged Riek Machar to abide by the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement both parties signed in January and to take steps to bring an end to the violence.
"He provided an update on his meeting with the Foreign Ministers from Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda, with Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam, as well as his trip to Juba and meetings with President Kiir. He also expressed strong concern about the humanitarian situation on the ground and the need for improved access for humanitarian workers in the face of the very real risk of famine to the people of South Sudan.
"Secretary Kerry urged Riek Machar to participate in a meeting as early as next week with IGAD negotiators to discuss bringing an end to violence, and engaging in meaningful political dialogue, and made clear that he had made the same request of President Kiir, who indicated his willingness to attend."
Earlier on May 2, Inner City Press asked UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric if the UN will play any role. Apparently not. Some say UN enovy Hilde Johnson is not viewed as impartial and is on her way out by this summer. We'll have more on this.
Earlier on May 2 spokesperson Jen Psaki told the press that while in Juba, Kerry
"will reiterate the need for all parties to respect the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement, to immediately cease attacks on civilians, and to fully cooperate with the United Nations and humanitarian organizations to protect civilians and to provide life-saving assistance to the people of South Sudan. He will also meet civil society leaders, IDP representatives, and UNMISS officials."
Will Kerry meet not only with Salva Kiir but also with Riek Machar, as outgoing UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay did?
On May 1 in Addis, Kerry flanked by his counterparts from Kenya, Uganda and Ethiopia referred to a "legitimate force... to help make peace." Some wondered how far outside the UN would this be? If the UN used a Force Intervention Brigade in Eastern Congo, is that model being considered? At the UN on May 1 an ambassador from one of those countries told Inner City Press this is "just the IGAD force." The Security Council meets later on May 2. Kerry said on May 1:
"it’s clear that everybody is in agreement the killing must stop; that humanitarian access needs to be delivered; most importantly, a legitimate force that has an ability to help make peace needs to get on the ground as rapidly as possible. And we agreed on both the terms and timing and manner and size, and we need to go to work to make sure that happens."
After on April 26 Kerry spoke with Salva Kiir. State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki gave this read-out:
Secretary Kerry spoke today with South Sudanese President Salva Kiir to express grave concern about the ongoing conflict in South Sudan, including recent violence in Bentiu and Bor and the deliberate targeting of civilians by armed groups on both sides of the conflict. Secretary Kerry welcomed the Government of South Sudan’s decision to release the four senior political officials who had been in detention since December. He urged President Kiir to stop military offensives and to adhere to the Cessation of Hostilities agreement, and noted U.S. demands that anti-government forces do the same. Both Secretary Kerry and President Kiir expressed their support for the IGAD-led peace process. Secretary Kerry noted the important role played by the UN Mission in South Sudan, denounced recent attacks on UNMISS bases and personnel, and encouraged President Kiir to ensure full and unfettered access throughout South Sudan for UNMISS, the African Union Commission of Inquiry, and the IGAD Monitoring and Verification Mechanism.
FOREIGN MINISTER BRENDE: Also, our work in South Sudan is now in the top of our agenda and the troika work there. The UN Security Council will hopefully make clear statements on this, because it’s unacceptable what we’re seeing of the humanitarian catastrophe unfolding. So thank you.
SECRETARY KERRY: Well said. I forgot – I’ll be there next week, as a matter of fact.
FOREIGN MINISTER BRENDE: Me too. (Laughter.)
SECRETARY KERRY: So we’ll talk about it. (Laughter.) See?
Kerry's statement came after US President Barack Obama threatened sanctions against not only former vice president and now opposition leader Riek Machar's forces but also those of president Salva Kiir.
Secretary Kerry Travels to Addis Ababa, Kinshasa and Luanda
Secretary of State John Kerry will visit Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Luanda, Angola, on April 29-May 5 to encourage democratic development, promote respect for human rights, advance peace and security, engage with civil society and young African leaders who will shape the continent’s future, and promote trade, investment and development partnerships in Africa.
The Secretary’s trip will also highlight U.S. investments in the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).
In Addis Ababa, Secretary Kerry will co-convene the Fourth Session of the U.S.-AU High-Level Dialogue and discuss a range of issues on which we partner with the African Union (AU). Secretary Kerry will meet with Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn and Foreign Minister Tedros Adhanom to discuss efforts to advance peace and democracy in the region, and strengthen important areas of bilateral cooperation with Ethiopia.
In Kinshasa, Secretary Kerry will meet with President Joseph Kabila and will discuss how the DRC government’s progress in neutralizing some of the dozens of dangerous armed groups that victimize the Congolese people can be consolidated and how to best advance the DRC’s democratization and long-term stability, including through a timely and transparent electoral process.
In Luanda, Secretary Kerry will commend President José Eduardo dos Santos for Angola’s leadership of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) and encourage the President’s continued personal engagement in the Great Lakes peace process. The Secretary will also discuss bilateral policy and trade issues with Foreign Minister Chikoti.
Secretary Kerry will also be accompanied by Assistant Secretary for African Affairs Linda Thomas-Greenfield, Special Envoy for the Great Lakes and the Democratic Republic of the Congo Russell Feingold, Special Envoy to Sudan and South Sudan Donald Booth, and Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women's Issue Catherine Russell.
Donald Booth going on the trip might indicate an unscheduled stop in Juba -- or just, talks in Addis.
At the April 25 State Department briefing, spokesperson Jen Psaki said, "trips are always subject to change, as you all know who have traveled with us. But I don’t have any other stops to announce today."
As to South Sudan, in the wake of the April 15-16 mass killing in Bentiu,UN official Mary Cummins said "we need the Ghanaian contingent to come soon."
This was troubling and strange, since it was ostensibly to ship weapons to the Ghanaians that the UN moved trucks of weapons by road to Bentiu. Weapons without soldiers?
So Inner City Press asked at the April 22 UN noon briefing and was promised an answer that never arrived. At the UN Security Council stakeout on April 23, Inner City Press put the question to UN Peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous who refuses Press questions. Even at the April 24 noon briefing, when Inner City Press asked for a third time, there was no answer. Now this belated response:
Subject: Your question on South Sudan. From: UN Spokesperson - Do Not Reply [at] un.org Date: Thu, Apr 24, 2014 at 4:51 PM To: Matthew Russell Lee [at] innercitypress.com
The Department of Peacekeeping Operations says that, as of now, 44 members of the Ghanaian Battalion are in Bentiu.
But that doesn't answer about the Ghanaian Battalion's (non) presence during the April 15-16 killings. And shipping containers of weapons for a mere 44 members? Compare this to the 350 troops from Ghana's continent in Cote d'Ivoire that the UN told Inner City Press about in January, here. We hope to have more on this.
The UN Security Council belatedly met about Bentiu on April 24. Afterward UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations chief Herve Ladsous came out and took three questions, curtly.
The UN itself says that the Ghanaian battalion -- the shipment of whose weapons by land to Bentiu triggered an objection by South Sudan's government and a report by Ladsous' DPKO that has yet to be publicly released -- was not in Bentiu to even try to stop the April 15-16 killings.
Inner City Press put this question to Ladsous both on and off UNTV's camera, but he refused to answer it. Video here and embedded below. Criticisms of his DPKO are spreading, but Ladsous refuses to answer them.
Back on April 22 Inner City Press asked Secretary General Ban Ki-moon's spokesman Stephane Dujarric about the Ghanaian contingent:
Inner City Press: on South Sudan, I saw that Mary Cummins, who is the acting Coordinator for Unity State, really sounded the alarm that they need more forces there. And she said, “we need the Ghanaian battalion to arrive soon”. I thought that was the battalion whose weapons that were found in the boxes--
Spokesman Dujarric: Let me find out.
But more than 24 hours later Dujarric, or ultimately Ladsous' DPKO, had not provided any answer. So Inner City Press put the question to Ladsous at the stakeout. Ladsous refused to answer it, pointedly calling first onReuters, then Voice of America, then on state-owned France 24.
Then Ladsous lumbered from the stakeout microphone and up the stairs, with a retinue of DPKO staff, many of whom worked under Alain Le Roy and even Jean-Marie Guehenno but now enable this decay within UN Peacekeeping.
From inside the closed consultation, the French mission's spokesperson tweeted that a film was being screened of Bentiu. This was confirmed to Inner City Press by an actual ambassador in the meeting; at the stakeout afterward Inner City Press asked Security Council president Joy Ogwu of Nigeria if the film was only about Bentiu and not Bor and she said Yes, only about Bentiu.
The April 15-16 killings in Bentiu have been attributed to the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) in Opposition led by former vice president Riek Machar, who has denied that his forces killed civilians. Likewise, the April 18 murders inside the UN peacekeeping camp in Bor have been attributed to supporters from the Dinka tribe of president Salva Kiir, and statements by his information minister bear this out.
The UN has alleged that in Bentiu the victims were targeted based not only on tribe but nationality. One response was that Darfur rebels from the Justice and Equality Movement who were fighting along with Kiir's government forces were killed, but not civilians.
In this environment, for UN Peacekeeping to be run by an official who can't even answer basic questions is a major problem. Watch this site.
In Pakistan last year: "an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) of Pakistan Air Force (PAF) crashed near PAF Mureed base during a test-flight mission due to a reported technical fault, some kilometres away from the district Mianwali in Punjab... The crashed UAV was identified as SG Falco-I (Selex), a sophisticated PAF surveillance drone equipped with the latest stealth and surveillance features."
Before that in Wales: "a drone spy plane has crashed just weeks after an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle test centre was launched in West Wales. The crash, involving a Selex Falco unmanned plane, has raised fears about the safety of testing unmanned aircraft in the skies over Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire.The crash happened at the Parc Aberporth UAV centre near West Wales Airport in Ceredigion, where new craft being tested include drone planes capable of delivering missiles."
So how was the Selex ES Falco chosen? On July 31, with the UN then as now allowing its Herve Ladsous to conceal which units of the Congolese Army he is aiding, on July 31, Inner City Press asked the UN who won its contract for drones:
Inner City Press: Ladsous announced during the Bastille Day in France that the drone contract had been signed. I’ve checked various databases that are publicly available. What’s the company that won? And if it’s not yet public, how could the UN be signing a contract declaring a winner and not have it be public? Is it public and what is the name of the company?
Spokesperson Martin Nesirky: I will check. I don’t believe it is public...Yes, Evelyn?
Question: Just to be certain the drones that are being used are for observation
This last is a point Ladsous drone-like makes: he, his mission and the drones are not offensive. To not parrot that, according to Ladsous, is "innuendo," a basis to explicitly refuse to answer Inner City Press' questions. Video compilation here.
The Office of the Spokesperson for Secretary General Ban Ki-moon provides answers between noon briefing to some media, notably Reuters as well as Ladsous' favorite, Agence France Presse (Ladsous served on one of AFP's management boards.)
But on this who won the drone contract question, neither Nesirky nor his office got back to Inner City Press. Twenty four hours later at the August 1 noon briefing, Nesirky read out this answer:
I was asked [and] the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations can confirm that it has reached the final stage of the procurement process in relation to the trial use of unmanned aerial vehicles, UAVs, by its Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO). The selected vendor is the Italian company SELEX ES. The UAV is known as the “FALCO” and is designed to be a medium-altitude, medium-endurance surveillance platform capable of carrying a range of payloads, including several types of high-resolution sensors. Of course, its payload does not include weapons.
When Spokesperson Nesirky was further elaborating that final point of Ladsous', and Inner City Press asked to follow up, Nesirky refused. He had given others two rounds of questions, but refused to Inner City Press.
Now these question must be answered, particularly given the history of crashes by the Selex Falco documented and raised (including h/t by a source the UN's former Group of Experts chief Steve Hege tried to intimidate by listing in his last report): how was the Selex Falco selected? How many other companies bid?
How much is the UN spending? Who would run the drones? Who would get the information? Watch this site.
UNITED NATIONS, August 1 -- The UN's Herve Ladsous, who has refused to answer Press questions for months, bragged at Bastille Day he had signed a UN contract for drones.
Inner City Press asked at the UN's July 31 noon briefing: who won? Who is getting paid?
Then at the August 1 noon briefing, without having e-mailed an answer to Inner City Press as the media which asked the question (as Nesirky office does with at least some other media), Nesirky came and announced the winner: the Selex ES Falco, described as the "the only tactical UAS entirely developed in Europe to have been exported and used in operations. Elbit of Israel has also ordered the Selex."
Interestingly, Qaddafi's Libya was also applying to buy a Selex, but was being reviewed by the Italian government. Now it's said Ladsous' drones could be flying over the Democratic Republic of the Congo (and its border with Rwanda) as early as September.
(On August 1, Nesirky refused Inner City Press any follow up questions on the claims he had just made about Ladsous' drones, while allowing others including Pamela Falk, UNCA's 2013 President, two rounds of questions.)
Nesirky's office, rather than solving this, has exacerbated it. At least one former UN spokesperson has indicated this is an abdication of the UN spokesperson's role. But that determination would be up to Ban Ki-moon. Even member states who have been speaking against this (non) communications approach don't have any say. Watch this site.
UNITED NATIONS, June 26 – The 135 rapes at Minova by two battalions of the Congolese army which the UN still supports were effectively covered up for months by UN Peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous. Wednesday, four week after Inner City Press asked Ladsous for an update -- “I do not respond to you,” he replied, video here – the UN finally provided numbers.
At the June 26 noon briefing, Secretary General Ban Ki-moon's deputy spokesperson Eduardo Del Buey said that there have been 11 arrests, but only two for rape. He added that 12 commanders have been suspended – but that is not an arrest, much less a conviction.
An hour later Inner City Press asked the new Force Commander for the UN Mission in the Congo, Alberto Dos Santos Cruz, about accountability for the Minova rapes, and about the UN still supporting the two Army units implicated.
Alberto Dos Santos Cruz provided a different number, saying “nine commanders have been removed.” This does not jibe with the two arrests for rape stated an hour earlier. Either way, as even Alberto Dos Santos Cruz himself after the briefing acknowledged, it is too small. So why is Ladsous' DPKO still supporting those Congo Army units?
In the same press conference, Del Buey called first on a Lebanese journalist. But the old UN Correspondents Association cut in to demand the first question, as they did in February with Bolivia's president Evo Morales. With the first question, it was a softball directed at the Lebanon mission commander, as were 75% of the questions in the press conference. One UNCA Executive Committee member, the one most closely aligned with Ladsous, asked if other commanders didn't “envy” Ladsous' UAV – that is, drone – slated for the Congo. Predictably, the answer was yes.
The Golan Heights or UNDOF commander Major Iqbal Singh Singha was allowed to give a speech and then leave without taking questions. Inner City Press and others pursued him into the hall – later there was a reference to journalists being “rude.” But it was rude to not arrange it for Major Iqbal Singh Singha to take questions before he left, as the Free UN Coalition for Access pointed out when given the fourth question. We will have more on this. Watch this site.
